CQMRESPQNDMNCE. 83 



given now-a-days by our modern botanists. Since Drury and Birdvvood's 

 (Vegetable Products) and Loudon mention notbing about tins shrub, I com- 

 municated (tbrough the Asian) to " Smoothbore," and am indebted to him for 

 tbe following synonyms : — 



Pogostemon purpuricaulis Dalz. in Hook. 



Do. purpuricale Drury, Indian Flora, Vol. II., p. 59. 



Do. parviflorus Bentb. in Wall. 



Do. pubescens Benth. in D. C. L. 



Do. fontescras Graham's Cat., Bombay, pi. 149. 



Do. intermedins Wall Cat. 2327. 



Pangla Bombay Pres. 



Tbe Secretary of tbe " Botanical Section, Bombay Natural History Society," 

 I hope, will be good enough to analyse the root of this plant, which it is supposed 

 to be a styptical agent, and let the members know if the alleged antidote has 

 been proved to be efficacious in the bite of tbe Echis carinata, known to 

 Anglo-Indians as the deadly "carpet snake."* I came to know of this plant by 

 a friend wishing to know "What root of a shrub has styptical properties for the 

 echis ? " 



The shrub is about five feet high, with leaves about eight inches long and velvety 

 back ; the bark is sometimes of a dark purple hue, emitting when crushed a black 

 currant-like odour, — Yours, &c, 



N.-W. P. Jan. 20. F. R. 



Sir, — As "F. R." rightly supposes, in his letter published in your issue of the 

 25th January, I am well aware of the existence of the shrub {Pogostemon purpini- 

 caidis), and of its empirical use in cases of echis bite. In the course of the last 

 ten years or so, I have on more than one occasion tried to direct attention to this 

 shrub, and to stimulate further inquiry as to its supposed value as a styptic. In 

 particular I may refer "F. R." — as he has apparently not seen it— to a note 

 contributed to the Asian, I think in 1881, but haven't the files tb refer to here — 

 in which I gave all the information then available on the subject . 



As far as I know, nothing further has since been elicited. I am glad, however, 

 to see that attention has again been drawn to the matter. 



The use of the root of this plant to stop the haemorrhage, which is the most 

 troublesome and dangerous symptom of echis bite was, if I remember right, first 

 brought to light when Mr. J. Elphinston was Collector of Ratnagiri, about 1873 

 or 1874. A clerk in the Collector's office was bitten by an echis, and a Brahman, 

 who was called in to treat the patient, produced some root, from which he prepared 

 a paste for external, and a decoction for internal, application. This treatment was 

 so successful in stepping tbe bleeding, that Mr. Elphinston made inquiries about 



* The popular name of Carpet Snake is used by Anglo-Indians in the m | 

 careless manner, and is generally applied to the Daboia. — Ed. 



